The former general director of the Lyric Opera of Chicago, one of the premiere opera companies in the country, will serve as a temporary artistic adviser at San Diego Opera.

William Mason, who spent 50 years in opera before being called out of retirement, said he was interested in the job because the company required a general director's presence as it regroups.

Mason, 72, assumes the post for the next six months on the heels of a flap that has dogged the company since last March. Former general and artistic director Ian Campbell, who has since left the company, announced then that the opera would cease operations in April amid sagging ticket sales and donations. Almost half the board resigned in the wake of the turmoil, and the state attorney general's office is conducting an investigation of the company's finances.